Well the countdown is on for the Laguna Phuket International Marathon and every time I pass one of the signs around Phuket I get a mixture of feelings from excitement and anticipation to full on ?get me a bucket? nausea.

It really doesn?t seem that long ago when I had more than ten weeks to plan and prepare for the marathon and yet suddenly here I am with only one week to go and I am so not ready, what was I thinking?!

I did carry out some research to enlighten me on how to prepare and train for a half marathon (a few steps shy of 22 km); I was also advised on different tactics and strategies by a number of people. Of course they were all quite different so I really didn?t know what to do for the best. In the end I decided that blagging it may well be the best strategy for me!

But on a serious note, I have taken some pointers onboard, one in particular is that I do a 30 minute spinning session before a 5km or 6km run, so basically my legs feel like jelly when I?m running but it really helps to build endurance which I?m certainly going to need.

Having said that, Jackie and I have picked up the pace somewhat in our training efforts and we try to run longer distances on the weekends.

Although some may find this surprising, it really hasn?t been that easy finding the time to fit it into my busy schedule! Jackie has also found this a real challenge, but in all fairness we have done so much more than we would have ever thought possible.

We even entered the Mai Khao Turtle Mini Marathon on 23 May and ran 10.5km. I ran alongside Jackie and we crossed the finishing line together in 1hr and 9 minutes. So with the half marathon being 22 km, I just need to run twice as far as of what I did on that afternoon. Easy... What was I thinking?!

Still, not bad for a beginner and the cherry on top was Jackie being presented with a trophy for coming in the top 5 for her age category (but I won?t mention the category just in case!). She was absolutely chuffed and I was very proud of her...

I really enjoyed taking part in an organised running event, everyone was so positive and there was a real buzz about the place, it was such a great feel good factor and it really motivated and helped spur me on. I?m excited to see what it?s going to be like at the Laguna marathon with over 5,000 people taking part; the atmosphere is going to be electric!

One thing we discovered doing the mini marathon was that it made us more aware of our running pace and, as a result, we have realised it will be better for us to run the half marathon at our own speed.

I am rather more comfortable running at a slightly faster pace than Jackie, despite the tortoise and the hare fable! (Let?s hope so! - Editor)

I have to admit that as the event gets closer, I sometimes have bouts of regret of agreeing to take part. It?s not so much the fear of failing to complete it but the fear of extreme pain and exhaustion. After all, it is a long time to be running, especially in this heat. However, I am hoping to get a finish time of less than 2.5 hours and I?m feeling pretty positive about that. When I asked Jackie what time she was hoping for, her reply was anytime the same day! (Tortoise and hare Garry! - Editor)

I am also pleased to reveal that several of my fellow contestants from The Biggest Loser Asia are taking part in this year?s marathon.

Although they were smart enough to opt for the 10.5km? Seriously what was I thinking?!
Funnily enough they are all blue team members and it will be great to share another epic journey with them... so are we ready for this?

Garry raced on 13 June, pick up the next edition of the Post out on 25 June to find out if he made it.